Roger Goodell needs to vacate the NFL now!
Once again the NFL and Roger Goodell have fumbled the ball.
This time the league is under fire after alleged cheating by the New England Patriots during the AFC championship game this week. The Patriots apparently were using 11 deflated balls. The deflated balls are considered easier to throw and would have given the Patriots an unfair advantage. The Patriots beat the Colts 45 - 7 to advance to Super Bowl 49 on Feb. 1st.
This wasn't the first time there was alleged cheating. The Patriots coaches were previously accused of spying on opposing teams sidelines during regular seasons games. The New Orleans Saints were also caught participating in Bounty Gate. Bounty Gate occurred when Saints players were given bonuses for tackling opposing offensive players. This caused the opposing teams players to be injured.
What does the NFL non reactions to cheating show to fans? What does it say about the job that Roger Goodell is doing as commissioner? Does it mean that he's ineffective in his job? Does it say that the bottom line and winning are more important than ethics? If the Patriots are found cheating, what kind of penalties should they get.
If there were allegations of cheating, why didn't the NFL do more to prevent it from happening again? And why wasn't there an official in charge of equipment so there's no possible way of tampering? Does it show that the NFL is poorly run?
Even if the alleged cheating never took place, there will still be some doubts about the NFL and the Patriots. Once doubt is in play, it will take a long time for many to trust the sport again. Once trust is lost, good luck in ever getting it back. Even if the Patriots are punished, the damage is still there.
If the NFL wants to recover from this scandal, they need to do a better job of cleaning up their act. They need to have stiffer penalties in place for those who cheat. They need to have a better eye on equipment. They should also have safeguards in place so that it never happens again.
Then maybe many can enjoy watching football once more.
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